JOIN USGreen-thumbed dreams
“Gardening is not just an activity for me; its my way of life,” pouts my neighbour friend. She goes on to add that her garden garnishes her living —“Hasiru Usiru.” How lucky! Not everyone can own a full blown residential garden in this urban concrete jungle of Bengaluru. Surrounded by buildings, it has not been easy for our neighbour to sustain her patch of green, as well.
Gardens take a minimum of 10 years to come to form. Passion, love and care are the prerequisites. Thus nurtured, our friend’s garden is now in its prime. She calls it her private oasis, soothing not only her frayed nerves but also those who stop and stare from their balconies around.
The decision to develop the barren land to a green area came with its challenges, our friend says, taking us down memory lane. The beginning was dealing with a neglected, uneven vacant site full of Parthenium growth and free dumping of garbage. When the clearing and levelling began, it seemed like an excavation site, with the unearthing of stinking household pots and pans, dirty linen, plastic and what not. Fortunately for her, the main requirement of copious water supply for gardening was met with by a not-so-deep borewell.
Meanwhile, people indulged in the guessing game. Will it be yet another mall? A high rise residential development? The clearing attracted children, who got busy fixing stumps to play cricket, and poles for shuttle and throw ball. Their street parking woes eased a bit. Vegetable and fruit vendors parked their carts for brisk business. Clothes pressing arrangements also cropped up, until we marked the area for a compound wall, said our friend. Today the proud owner’s green patch is in her teens full of life’.
Nonetheless, no garden is without peccadillos — a dry patch here, a frayed creeper there, parasites, broken pathways, weeds and such things. ‘Grow your veggies’ is easily said than done, was our friend’s opinion. Yet birds, bees and butterflies have a rollicking time zooming in and out. Though no exotic plants and flowers are focused upon, the regular jasmine, rose, night queen shrub, varieties of hibiscus, cannas, davana along with basil, thyme, and Indian Borage (doddapatre) spread their fragrance.
While May flowers bloom on time to herald the summer, the Xmas glory Poinsettia adds a rich winter red. Crossandra, or Kanakambara, multiplies on its own adding a bright orange hue. The perineals which bloom after the first showers require minimum maintenance and fill suitable corners through out the year.
A small patch of lawn for morning yoga makes my day, adds the owner. She has a good suggestion, though. To regain the name of ‘Garden City’ from ‘Garbage City,’ such private efforts should be recognised with better incentives for more and more people to channelise their efforts in greening Bengaluru.
However, her heart sinks if the gardener skips his weekly visit, a man whose role she certainly acknowledges in keeping her oasis blooming. “Neighbour’s envy?” I ask. Shrugging her shoulders, pat comes her reply, “Owner’s pride.”